Tried and True Park Touring Tips

[Dallas_Lady]

Inspired by the amount of people who always want to know how to beat the lines and the fact that I am going in June this year instead of September, I thought I'd start a thread for sharing our best touring tips. What works for you? What doesn't?


So let's have it... What are your touring startegies for beating the lines and maximizing your park time?

 

[aunt kelly]

Be at the parks when they open! We can ride many more rides and enjoy many more attractions during the first two hours that the park is open, than during other hours of the day. This strategy works especially well during very busy times of the year.

 

[shelleybell]

I also vote for early. EMH works out great for us. We also take a break and go back in the evening when many people are leaving. By the way Dallas_Lady...we also live in The Colony. Looks like we both will be out of town at the same time!
Have a great trip!
shelleybell

 

[got2lovedisney]

First thing we do is hop the train to Frontierland. Grab a FastPass for either BTMR or Splash. Ride the other while waiting for the FastPass time. (If you get there first thing...the wait won't be long.) Use your fastpass. Hop the train to Tomorrowland. Grab a FastPass for Space Mountain. Ride Buzz, TTA, while waiting. After that...we play by ear. The mountains are done with minimal wait times but you gotta get there EARLY! And take avantage of the FastPasses when possible.

 

[woodybuzzy]

Is the train to the Splash and BTMR faster than walking from the entrance when the park opens? Is the train open at the start of the early entry, I didn't see it on the lists of open rides. I always forget to use the train to move around.

for our tip I say definitely ride rides during parades. We rode 8 large rides in one hour at the MK during a parade.

Also stay in the parks during the rain. We rode tons of rides during a downpour when everyone left. so we got wet, but we had fun.

 

[litlpixie]

I completely agree with EMH or at least being there for opening...totlly worth it. One tip my family always follows: Dont push it and dont "expect the Magic" The best memories we have at WDW came from the unexpected precious moments and NOT running around the park "looking for fun" sorry to be sappy. We tour, we laugh, we eat and then if someone starts to get too tired, too hot, too cranky.......We go Swimming!!!

 

[2minny]

We leave in 4 days and this site has been an awesome resource! I'm trying to decide if we should hop the train or RUN like maniacs to our first rides! We usually hit it hard to get those 4 rides done....THEN we relax and let the "magic happen"....oh we just can't wait! Don't laugh, but I must ride "it's a small world" at least 3 times....my poor family, they join me once or twice

 

[cheerdaddy]

Dallas_Lady:
looks like we'll be at the world during the same time as you are ( June 8th-24th for us)......maybe we'll run into you guys!! anyway, not to sound like a broken record, but, our strategy is similiar to the above posters:
get there early!!! that is the #1 tip I can offer...
if you're early risers, take advantage of EMH! you can get an awful lot done in the parks in that extra hour without the crowds...this is when we knock out the e-ticket rides; before the lines start getting heavy...if you have kids: If you don't use EMH for anything else, use it for the MK and knock out fantasyland without the sea of crowds....you'll never want to venture in there during regular hours again, trust me...

take advantage of the fastpass system!!! It's free and available for everyone to use....why wait in lines if you don't have to?

have a general idea of what you want to do in the parks before you go...Im not a great professor or user of the park touring plans like some of the folks here on the DIS, but, I recommend having a general plan of attack before you enter the park...get a park map and show schedule upon entering the park and while you're in the first line of the day; take some time and block off time periods for your plan of attack....this will cut way down of the frustration of just missing a show time and whatnot

we have also always employed a strategy of attending the EMH park and then after hitting the major attractions, getting out of that park and heading somewhere else as the crowds start to get heavier in the EMH park.....

along these lines; our general plan is to try and go against the masses...park hopping is one way of doing this....we also tend to eat meals at "off" times, reducing the amount of time "wasted" during the day waiting for tables and such....riding rides during the parades and other special events is another way to get alot done in less time....

If you're planning on spending more than 10 days in the WDW parks over any one year period of time; I strongly suggest that you consider buying AP's or PAP's if you like the water parks...this strategy not only saves money, but, more importantly to our family, provides the freedom to do "whatever" you want to do in the WDW complex....that freedom to just "go" or "do" whatever you want is worth its' wait in gold!!!

I guess my last tip is: just relax and don't stress out about whether or not you can "see" or "do" everything in any one trip...we've been many, many times, and still have not seen or done everything! It will be crowded during June this year(we've been during this time several times before). It will be hot and humid, and you can probably expect some rain alot of the days(usually quick afternoon showers)....take advantage of EMH and fastpass' and have a general idea of what you want to accomplish before you enter the parks and you will find it to be quite manageable and enloyable...

 

[grammagail]

I noticed on several occasions - people recommending taking a break. Is there a good time to do that? Late afternoon, early evening?

There are 5 of us (2 adults, 2 teens, 1-4 yo). We'll get there early and don't mind leaving for a break - but when is a good time?

Thanks.

 

[got2lovedisney]

To clarify...no I don't think the train is open for EE. In those cases we just head straight to Tomorrowland. We hop the train when we've missed EE or nonEE mornings. We do this just for the purpose of saving our feet. (You do a LOT of walking at Disney!!) Plus I like the ride!

 

[mickeymoose3]

We always "zig" when everybody else "zags". We go to MK early to enjoy the relative quiet early in the day. Grab fast passes at favorite rides. Remember you can hold multiple passes, just need to wait 2 hours from the last time you got one. Usually we will have a quick early lunch at MK as soon as the casual places open, then we ride a little more until the park gets that crowded feeling. We will leave MK early afternoon, grabbing a fast pass for splash or space mountains if there ride times are in the evening. We then ride monorail to EPCOT where the line in future world will have thinned out. We NEVER line up for spaceship earth, as this ride will have almost no lines in the late afternoon. We will grab a FP for test track if the time is convenient. After touring future world, it is time to hop on the monorail for MK in time to use our fastpass we picked up before leaving there earlier. Night time is leisure time. We realize we will not ride much at this time of day without a wait, so we do the "small rides" such as carousal of progress, Tomorrowland transit, etc.

I know some people will think the time riding from park to park is wasted, but we find it a nice 15 minute break between the action. I just hope too many people don't start zigging with us. LOL

 

[cheerdaddy]

grammagail:
when to take a break will vary from family to family...we usually find between 1 and 4pm to be a good time to take a break and go back to the resort and have lunch and a swim...we are usually there in june and it can be really, really hot during this time of day so it serves as a great way to reenergize the batteries...our family is almost always in the parks first thing in the morning; so, for us, midday works...if you don't get into the parks until later in the day, you might not need the break then...just get a feel for your family and you'll know when the right time comes..

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Originally posted by grammagail
I noticed on several occasions - people recommending taking a break. Is there a good time to do that? Late afternoon, early evening?

There are 5 of us (2 adults, 2 teens, 1-4 yo). We'll get there early and don't mind leaving for a break - but when is a good time?

Thanks.

On EMH days at MK, if you are there by 8am it would work well to leave the park at about 11:30am and return around 2:30pm (or later if you skip parade). Depending on where you are staying, this gives you time for about a 2 hour rest/swim at the resort. If you are there during the summer this break will be practically a necessity (especially fpr the 4yo).

 

[Magic2000]

We will be at Disney for the 4th of July week!!! This is actually our third time going in July; but we've also gone in June and August. Summertime is definitely HOT - but its not really that bad, if you have a plan!

We usually go to early morning - just as the other posters have said, you can get so much done in that first hour or so!

We usually leave around noon or so - either grabbing lunch at the park or at one of the hotels; then we head back to our room for a nap/swim time.

We return to the parks around 4:30 or 5:00 pm; and stay as late as we want.

We use fastpass as much as possible!!! And we make one of our meals each day a "Sit Down Meal". That way, we also have some down time, in the air conditioning. Be sure to make PSs before you leave home for any "must do" restaurants!

Also - I suggest you rent a stroller for the 4 yr old, especially at Epcot. Its a lot of walking, and its hot, and its hard for the little ones to keep up.

Enjoy!!!

 

[grammagail]

thanks for the suggestions. I've been reading posts for about a week now - getting TONS of good advise.

We haven't been in over 10 years - the girls were small then - but are grown up now. I cannot WAIT to see my grandson's face...he talks about Mickey everyday.

We'll be there 7 days/6 nights - end of June. The only other time we went - was end of July, so I know it will be hot.

It will be hard for ME to take the necessary break (don't want to miss anything) - but from what I've read, it will help out in the long-run................